Dinner with the Uchihas and Uzumakis
by T'Liana
Summary: The Uchihas own a massive block of land in the countryside that's perfect for a gathering with friends, so they invite the Uzumakis over and tell them to bring the fireworks!


Hahaoya - Mother

Chichi - Father

 **Dinner with the Uchihas and Uzumakis**

Naruto was currently squished between the car door and his older sister and he wasn't sure which was worse. At least he didn't have to sit next to Naruko – they'd had an argument before getting into the car and their hahaoya had forced Kyuubi to sit between them.

The Uzumakis were the loudest most dysfunctional family to ever grace the planet, yet they were easily the most whole and loving group. At the top of the pecking order was Minato Uzumaki, the blonde-haired and blue-eyed chichi and high school teacher. He was incredibly handsome for the age of forty and quite a few hahaoyas of his students lusted after his firm physique, shaggy golden locks and dreamy blue eyes. Of all the teachers at Kohona High, Minato was one of the favourites alongside Iruka Umino and Kakashi Hatake.

Kushina Uzumaki, his wife, was a fiery redheaded beauty who worked as a volunteer at the local soup kitchen and was loved by everyone who met her. She'd attracted Minato with her strong and determined personality and even now after having three children she still had the ability to turn heads. A caring hahaoya and honestly good person, Kushina was a role model to all her children.

The eldest child was a twenty-year-old girl named Kyuubi who was a physical copy of her hahaoya with glowing red hair, pale skin and plum blue eyes. She had a temper unlike that of her hahaoya that would flare at the slightest provocation and it had caused quite a bit of trouble while she was at school. Now that she'd outgrown the difficult teenage years she'd calmed considerably and delved into the business of helping others like Kushina did. Kyuubi loved animals and divided her time between studying a veterinarian degree and volunteering at a local animal shelter.

The youngest two were twins – a boy and a girl. Naruto, the boy, was the eldest of the two and was a splitting image of Minato when he was sixteen. Spiky blonde hair, electric blue eyes, caramel skin and a slim, muscular build, Naruto was very attractive and loved joking around and making people laugh. He had a passion for cooking and loved hospitality classes where he could create all sorts of dishes and be creative about it. That passion had led to an exploding microwave and several smoking ovens but he was getting better. Working at Ramen Ichiraku, however, had resulted in less kitchen accidents and Naruto making dinner almost every night.

Naruko, however, was a complete opposite to her twin brother. She too had blonde hair (long of course), electric blue eyes, caramel skin and a slim build and was quite the prankster with three detentions so far in first term alone. Despite her tendency to get into trouble she worked hard to pass her subjects and was always willing to tutor others who struggled. She loved telling jokes with her brother and being the life of the gathering because she was so… so charismatic and likeable. The only person she ever argued with was Naruto.

One such argument had landed them in the situation they were now. Kushina was driving and Minato sat in the passenger's seat with a chocolate cake in his lap. Naruko sat behind Kushina with a grumpy expression on her face and cheese and biscuits resting on her legs. Naruto sat behind Minato with a garden salad in his lap and an equally grumpy expression on his face. Kyuubi was sandwiched between them with a wombok salad nestled in her hands. The argument had been completely irrelevant… something about Naruto wearing the same orange shirt two days in a row and it being completely gross.

"I said I was sorry," Naruko grumbled as they drove along a winding stretch of outback road.

"Just forget it," Kyuubi hissed. "Hahaoya and chichi'll forget about it so don't bring it up."

Naruto leant across Kyuubi to speak quietly. "It's okay. You know I'm gross anyway."

"True." Naruko pulled a face. "You're the most disgusting human being I know."

"Thanks," the only boy said sweetly. He turned his gaze out the window and watched the sun slowly sink towards the earth and turn the sky grey. His mind turned to the assignments waiting for him at home, as well as the work for his sisters. Kyuubi rarely had a night off but tonight was a special occasion, as their entire family had scheduled dinner with the Uchihas at their outback block of land. Nights such as these were rare for both families.

Minato leant forward and pointed to the left. "There's the turn-off."

Kushina slowed and turned the car onto a gravelly driveway. Naruto could hear the fireworks bumping around in the boot, a prime example of why isolated areas were the best places to have dinner. He bumped against Kyuubi quite a few times as the car jerked back and forth and her hair went in his mouth but he said nothing for fear of annoying her. Older sisters were the worst when they were mad.

"Here we are," Kushina announced as they rounded a bend. Naruto leant forward and gaped at the huge expanse of grassy land that greeted him, ringed with woodland and bushy trees. A large shed rested to one side of the block with a sizeable marquee set up directly outside. Kushina drove right up to the marquee and parked, the Uzumakis pouring out in a single concentrated burst.

Four people stood to welcome the family of five. First to move forward was the only female Mikoto Uchiha, Kushina's best friend. Mikoto, an aged beauty with dark eyes and hair, volunteered at the soup kitchen too and was very dedicated to her family and making the Uchiha home life as comfortable as possible. Her husband, Fugaku Uchiha, was very sour-looking until he had time to sit down and spend some time with his wife and sons. Everyone agreed that the dark-haired Fugaku worked too hard in the real estate industry and it took its toll on his family, but Mikoto was the one who stepped up and made everything work.

The eldest son, Itachi Uchiha, was the same age as Kyuubi and had long dark hair and dark eyes like his chichi (Naruto believed that his hahaoya and Mikoto planned their pregnancies so they had babies at the same time). He was a law student with plenty of potential to be a major lawyer one day as he had a sharp mind and tongue and it helped that his family had enough money to pay for everything.

The youngest boy, Sasuke Uchiha, was the same age as Naruto and Naruko (furthering Naruto's theory that their hahaoyas schemed together so they could both have babies) and looked more like Mikoto than Fugaku with a pointed face, spiky black hair and onyx-black eyes. He was very calm and collected and provided the voice of reason to the Uzumaki twins whenever an assignment was due. At school he hung around with the twins but always stayed out of the way whenever Naruko started pranking, preferring to sit back with Naruto and watch. He wanted to be an architect one day and based all his career decisions around that one fact.

"Mikoto!" Kushina cried, embracing her friend. The women giggled and smiled before moving to get all the food from the car. Fugaku and Minato instantly struck up a conversation about the latest hunting reports and moved into the shed to take a look at some of the old machinery inside.

The five children stood together, the Uzumakis staring around the land in awe. "It's gorgeous," Kyuubi grinned. "How come we've never visited before?"

"Chichi only just bought the place," Sasuke explained.

"He got it for a good price," Itachi added. "Hahaoya loves it out here. She's thinking of buying some quad bikes so we can make some tracks and race." He laughed at the look on Naruko's face. "I'll make sure it happens."

"So Itachi, what have you been up to?" Naruto asked as the group moved towards the marquee. "I heard you landed a client even though you're only a law student."

"Not true." Itachi shook his head and fiddled with the end of his ponytail. "She wanted me to represent her because she thought I was hot."

"What was the crime?" Naruko asked curiously.

"Oh, this woman was charged with the murder of her husband. By the way she openly flirted with me to get me on her side, I think she's manipulative and used to getting her own way." He smirked as he sat in one of the ten metal chairs surrounding a wooden table. "She thought I was the real thing until Professor Sarutobi came to get me."

"Is it fun working on all those cases?" Kyuubi asked, sitting beside him. The others followed suit.

"Fun isn't a word I'd use… more like draining. The workload is intense and I'm one of the top four students so I get to work on cases. So Naruto, Naruko, how's school going?"

Naruko jumped forward before her brother could speak. "It's great! We have assignments to do but no biggie. Kyuubi's got it worse because she's still at University like you!"

"It's my last year," Kyuubi added.

Itachi raised his hands in praise. "Me too. What's the course like?"

"Well the first two years were spent studying dogs, the third studying cats and this year we're looking at everything else. First two terms are farm animals, third term is rodents and I'm not sure about the fourth."

"Maybe fish?" Itachi suggested.

"I'm no marine biologist." She snickered at the thought and ran her fingers through red locks, wincing as they caught on some knots. She and Itachi began a deep discussion on their studies and Naruko turned to the other two.

"They're boring," she whispered. "Is there anything fun?"

"We have a pool table." Sasuke shrugged and stood. He moved off to an open part of the shed with the Uzumaki twins rushing after him. There was no wall covering this part of the shed and numerous dusty items were stacked around the walls, surrounding a covered square right in the middle of the space. Sasuke pulled the tarp off to reveal a clean pool table with cues and balls littered over the felt.

"Nice," Naruto grinned. "I've always wanted to beat you at something, Sasuke."

"In your dreams." Sasuke flicked his hand over the felt and brushed away some stray clumps of dust. "So who wants to go first? I'd ask to do doubles but there's only three of us."

"You and Naruto," the blonde girl said immediately. She blushed. "I don't really know how to play pool…"

"We'll show you," her brother replied, gathering all the balls on one side of the table. "So Sasuke, how're you doing with the math assignment?"

"Okay, I guess. I'm having trouble with Part B but I'll be asking Iruka-sensei about it at lunchtime tutorial on Tuesday."

"I think I'll come with you," Naruto sighed. "I can't wrap my head around Part A! I don't get all that registration and stuff… all I can do is find a car. The other expenses just go right over my head."

"Same here." Naruko had hunted around the stacked items and found an old swivel chair and was currently brushing it off. She sneezed violently. "I – uh, gross – math is _not_ my strong point. I'd rather do physics than math."

"But physics is basically math."

"Scratch that. I'd rather do textiles than math." She finished dusting off the stool and sat gingerly, wincing as it creaked ominously. Naruto snickered and finished organising the balls into a triangle, moving the white ball to the other side of the table.

"So the aim of pool is to sink all the balls into the pockets." He pointed to six different holes on the edges of the rectangular table. "There are two types of balls – circle and no circle."

Sasuke picked up a pool cue and continued. "You have to hit the white ball into the others and try and sink one. If you sink a circle you can only sink circles from then on. If you sink one without a circle you can only sink those ones."

"I think I get it…"

"The one ball you can't hit is this one, the eight ball." Naruto tapped a black ball. "You can only try and sink it if all your other balls have been sunk."

Naruko made a dismissive gesture. "Just get on with it. After this I'm versing Sasuke."

The two boys began their game leisurely. Kyuubi and Itachi said something about looking for tomatoes and left holding an empty blue bucket. Minato and Fugaku moved to the wooden table and started talking about whatever it was chichis talked about. Kushina and Mikoto were in the kitchen preparing snacks and gossiping about whatever it was hahaoya's gossiped about.

"Booyah! I _owned_ that shot!" Naruto leapt into the air excitedly as he sunk one of his balls. Sasuke leant against his cue impassively.

"Nicely done. Now you get another shot." The black-haired boy smirked. "I can do better."

Naruto flushed. "Shut up! You so can't." His sister rolled her eyes as he lined up his next shot. Just as Naruto went to hit the white ball he felt something poke his butt and jumped high, the ball moving in the wrong direction. "Sasuke! You bastard!"

Sasuke looked at him innocently. "I didn't do anything."

The blonde rounded on his sister. "Naruko, did he poke me?"

"He did."

Sasuke glared.

"That's cheating so I get another go."

"No you don't."

"Yes I do."

"Fine. It won't make much of a difference anyway."

Naruto bent over the pool table to line up another shot, this one more difficult than the last. "So Sasuke… have you gotten around to reading _1984_ yet?" he asked casually.

"Yes," Sasuke replied, eyes narrowing. "Have you?"

"No, but I read the summary on _Wikipedia_. Can I borrow your notes? I'm having trouble with the themes and ideas."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Seriously, if you actually read the book it'd be easier."

"I ain't got time to read."

Naruko groaned. "And that's why. He spends too much time in front of the TV."

Naruto grumbled as he missed sinking number two by _this_ much. "So close… okay Sasuke, your turn. Let's see what you're made out of."

"I'm made out of muscle fibres-"

"Forget it. Just go." Naruto moved back and Sasuke smirked before wandering around to the other side of the table for better aim. All eyes were on the Uchiha as he successfully pulled off three sinks in a row.

"I don't get why you don't ask Kyuubi for help," Sasuke said vaguely as he stepped aside for Naruto.

"The same reason I don't ask Naruko: she won't help me."

"I don't help you either."

"Yes you do."

Sasuke sighed. "I guess that's true." His eyes wandered to where Mikoto and Kushina were placing plates of snacks on the wooden table sheltered by the marquee. "Looks like food's ready."

"Food!" Naruto was about to race over to the table when he remembered the game. "It's my turn when we get back." Then he ran over with Naruko and Sasuke on his tail.

"Where're your siblings?" Minato asked the trio.

"They went to pick tomatoes, I think," Naruko replied.

"There's a tomato patch on the other side of the block," Fugaku explained. "Itachi loves the tomatoes there."

Naruko sat beside her brother and leant in close. "Ino would love home-grown tomatoes," she whispered. Ino Yamanaka was a friend from school who was also blonde and very close with Naruko, as the two were the only girls in their friendship group. The others were Kiba Inuzuka (who was obsessed with dogs and explosions) and Gaara Sabaku (who loved playing video games at all hours of the night). Together, the six of them made an unbeatable team when playing _Titanfall_ and _Halo_.

"True," Naruto agreed, leaning forward to cut some cheddar. He had to wait for Sasuke to finish with the knife first and then for Minato to remove his hand since his chichi was grabbing some strawberries.

"I see you've got the pool table out already," Fugaku observed, glancing over at the open part of the shed.

"The twins wanted something fun to do." Sasuke shrugged and munched down on his cheddar and cracker.

"Who's winning?" Kushina asked curiously, opening a bag of Doritos.

"No one yet," Naruto admitted.

Everyone looked around as Itachi and Kyuubi came into view, the male holding a bucket filled with tomatoes. They joined their families underneath the marquee.

"Tomatoes," Itachi announced, placing the bucket on the table. Kyuubi brushed red hair from her eyes and slipped into the spare seat beside her sister, grinning. "They're as red as Kyuubi's hair," the eldest Uchiha sibling continued.

Minato laughed. "That's so true."

The chatter continued for several more minutes with the families catching up on everything while finishing off the plates of snacks. They talked about how the soup kitchen was going and what the three high school students wanted to do when they grew up. Naruto – a ramen chef. Naruko – a teacher. Sasuke – an architect. Everyone had fun teasing Naruto about his dream but he wouldn't be deterred. Minato was proud of Naruko following in his footsteps and Fugaku was proud of Sasuke. Both families were honestly families, not just by blood but by their feelings and actions.

When Naruto finished stuffing his mouth he ran back over to the pool table and took his shot, failing to sink the ball because he rushed it. He glared when Sasuke approached, hands tucked casually in his pockets.

"Your turn," the blonde said grumpily, handing Sasuke his cue. The Uchiha smirked and took the cue, lining up his own shot. He failed too (on purpose so Naruto wouldn't feel bad) and gave the game back to his friend.

Their game was interrupted when Itachi and Naruko ambled over to watch. "Where's Kyuubi?" Sasuke asked.

Naruko ran to her seat before Itachi could steal it. "She's in the shed kitchen with hahaoya and Mikoto. I don't know where our chichis are… probably going down to the dam before it gets too dark." All eyes instinctively flicked to the darkening sky. "I can't wait until chichi gets out the fireworks," the youngest Uzumaki enthused.

"It won't be until after dessert," Naruto pointed out.

Ignoring the boy's statement, Itachi clapped his hand on Sasuke's back. "After this game how about we go doubles? Me and Naruko against you two."

"Yes!" Naruko jumped up excitedly and leapt at Itachi, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Are you good at pool?"

"Good? I taught Sasuke everything he knows."

"I'm on your team."

Itachi ruffled her thick blonde hair playfully. "Sure thing Naruko. It'll be fun to beat both our brothers."

She sent Naruto and Sasuke an evil look. "I can't wait."

Both boys glanced at each other with wide eyes before turning back to their game, moving a bit slower than before. Itachi cleaned off another chair and sat patiently while the pair continued, occasionally whispering tips and advice to Naruko.

"See the red ball there? If Sasuke positioned himself for a rebound shot he could sink it but it's very risky. Rebound shots are the hardest to get right. Don't do it unless you're skilled like me."

Sasuke grit his teeth and aimed for a purple ball instead, missing it by inches. Naruto grimaced sympathetically but growled when he saw that Sasuke had boxed him in so he didn't have a clear shot. "Bastard," he hissed through clenched teeth.

The Uchiha shrugged. "Do your worst. Remember, if you hit one of mine I get two shots on my next go and the same goes for if you don't hit anything."

Laughter burst from the kitchen and Naruko lurched off her stool in surprise, running straight into Sasuke. Once she'd regained her balance she punched his arm and returned to her seat huffily while Itachi tried his hardest to smother his chuckles. In the mayhem, Naruto managed to nudge the white ball a tiny bit to the left so he had a good chance at a rebound shot. No one noticed his little moment of cheating and he had no intention of letting anyone know.

Sasuke gaped as Naruto successfully sunk a ball. "How did you do that?"

"Rebound ball baby," the blonde snickered, proceeding to shake his hips in what he called a 'happy dance', only stopping when Sasuke managed to pin his arms to his side. Even then Naruto put up a struggle, with Sasuke eventually pressing him against the pool table.

"Stop dancing," the Uchiha ordered, basically squishing Naruto in his arms. Itachi and Naruko shared a knowing look.

"Fine." Naruto wriggled out from the death-grip and went to take his next shot, missing his intended ball and hitting one of Sasuke's instead. The other boy triumphantly sunk the rest of his balls in a single turn before turning his attention to the eight ball, which he then missed.

The game continued for a few tense minutes. Whenever Sasuke had a perfect shot Naruto would ruin it by aiming for another ball and whenever Naruto had a perfect shot Sasuke would go for the eight ball. When Sasuke finally sunk the eight ball Naruto still had two balls left.

"And my young prodigy wins," Itachi declared, sliding off his stool and stretching. "So how about it Naruko? Still feel like doubles?"

"You bet." She was about to steal Naruto's cue when she spotted two figures approaching them from the gloom. "Someone, turn on the lights." Itachi flicked the switch and spotlights engulfed the entire area, allowing them to see their chichis coming back from the dam.

"Chichi, what's that?" Naruto asked. Minato had a strange object held between his hands.

"This is a turtle," Minato explained. "We found him wandering towards the dam from next door's property."

"He's so cute!" Naruko exclaimed, rushing over. She gently stroked the turtle's leathery skin. "It's so soft."

The other three joined them and chorused their agreement. "Are you going to take it back?" Itachi asked.

"After we get a photo and a torch."

"I'll get the camera and torch." Sasuke moved inside quickly and returned minutes later with the three women in tow. Kushina, Mikoto and Kyuubi cooed over the turtle and gasped at how slimy the shell was.

"Turtles grow their own shells like we grow hair," Kyuubi declared proudly. "This little guy can't be more than a year old."

"I thought you didn't study fish until later on this year," Itachi pointed out.

Kyuubi stared at him. "I was top student in biology and animal ecology. I know these things."

"Let's get a photo of everyone with the turtle," Fugaku suggested. "That way we can look back on today fondly."

Naruto was immediately sulky. "I can't look back at today fondly!" he cried. "Sasuke beat me at pool!"

"There's always next time." Sasuke rolled his eyes. Naruto sighed and slung his arm over Sasuke's shoulder, drawing the boy close for the photo. Naruko stood on this other side with all the parents and Itachi behind them. Kyuubi placed the camera down on the table and set a three second timer, rushing to stand beside Naruko just before it flashed.

Mikoto was the first to reach the camera. "It looks great," she grinned. "Okay boys, time to take the turtle back."

"I wanna go too!" Naruko exclaimed. "Itachi, can we wait until the turtle's gone back before starting?"

"Sounds fair," Itachi replied. "Boys, let's go."

Fugaku, Minato, Itachi, Sasuke, Naruto and Naruko began trekking through the grass, Fugaku holding a torch and Minato holding the turtle. The three teens bickered about their art class project (a pop art painting of their own choice) as Naruto wanted to separate his canvas into four identical drawings with different colours, Naruko wanted to do a cartoon face and Sasuke wanted to paint a coffee tin. They were trying to figure out which kind of pop art was easiest but with three incredibly strong personalities in the argument the attempt to reach a solution was doomed to failure. The adults just shooks their heads and talked about the stock market, which was decidedly boring.

They reached the dam and Naruto was impressed with its size. Sand surrounded half of the expanse of water and grass lined the other half, a dark green colour compared to the dry, brittle green of the rest of the block.

"Be careful around here," Fugaku warned. "There's a bull ants nest."

The group approached the water and Minato bent down, holding the turtle over the surface. It hadn't moved at all but now its legs worked furiously in mid-air. Minato let go and it landed in the water with a splash before disappearing within seconds.

Silence.

"Well that was exciting," Sasuke said sarcastically. "Doubles anyone?"

Fugaku led the way with the torch and the walk back to the shed and marquee was quicker. The younger ones separated from the elders and went straight to the pool table while the elders moved to the kitchen to help with food preparation.

"Sasuke can go first," Itachi offered as he chalked the tip of his cue. Naruto winced at the grinding sound and joined Sasuke in arranging the balls into a triangle.

"Do we have a strategy?" Naruto whispered.

"Sink as many balls as possible and make sure they don't," Sasuke replied, reaching for his own cue.

Sasuke took the first shot, followed by Itachi, Naruto and then Naruko. They stayed in that order for the entire game and it was a tense one. With Itachi guiding Naruko she was essentially unstoppable except they hadn't counted on Sasuke and Naruto's ability to work as a team. After a tough and gruelling match – with several insults and threats thrown around – the two boys emerged the victors.

"It looks like I finally surpassed the master," Sasuke stated calmly, placing his cue on the rack.

"It's because Naruko sucks," the blonde boy sniggered.

Itachi rolled his eyes. "Your sister is getting very good at this. With some more tutoring she'll be better than the two of you put together."

Naruko poked her tongue and smirked. "You may be better than me now but just wait… I'll beat you. I'm gonna go sit down, care to join me?"

"As long as we get to eat soon." Naruto leant his cue against the wall and bounded after Naruko. Itachi and Sasuke shrugged and followed.

Now seated around the table Naruto felt how cold it was getting and his orange shirt was doing little to protect him from the cold. It was now very dark and the spotlights cancelled all stars from the sky, leaving it an inky black. Bugs clicked and chirped in the background and gave the place a… serene feel.

"How many fireworks did you bring?" Itachi asked.

"Enough for a fantastic show." Naruto wrapped an arm around Sasuke's neck and pulled him close, grinning. "It'll be magnificent."

Normally if someone touched Sasuke with such familiarity he would punch them. Hard. His family and the Uzumakis were the only exception to that rule, especially Naruto since he was Sasuke's best friend in the entire world. So he accepted the half-embrace half-chokehold with as much dignity as he could muster.

"Chichi got them last time he had a boys' night out with Kakashi and your uncle Obito. Some guy was selling them for a good price that he couldn't pass up." Naruto looked at his twin to finish.

"Yeah, so since your chichi missed out on the boys' night our chichi thought about this get-together. Our hahaoyas organised it because our chichis are hopeless." She looked very pleased with herself.

Kyuubi exited the shed and joined the four. "Dinner's nearly done," she said.

"What is it?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"Noodles, fried rice, roast chicken, salads, spring rolls… oh, and some random bread Mikoto found." She smiled prettily. "What have you all been up to?"

Itachi shrugged. "Chatting and playing pool."

"Sasuke and I beat him and Naruko."

"Good job." Kyuubi patted her younger sister's hand sympathetically. "You'll get them next time."

"I know I will."

"Dinner is served!"

Four adults exited the house carrying an array of platters. All the foods Kyuubi listed were placed on the table as well as plates, cutlery, cups and jugs of water. Nine mouths salivated at the sight.

"That looks so good…" Naruto moaned. "Can we eat it yet?"

Kushina set down the final plate. "That's all of it. Dig in!"

Naruto went straight for the fried rice and chicken and just beat Sasuke to the spring rolls. Chatter broke out around the table as everyone got their food and settled back hungrily, the adults talking among themselves while the teenagers had their own discussion.

"So I want your honest opinion on the new _McDonald's_ opening near the school," Naruko said to Sasuke as she dug into her noodles. "Is it unnecessary?"

"It is," Sasuke replied. "Too much fast food makes people lazy."

"Then we can't enjoy good food like this," Naruto agreed.

Sasuke shuddered. "I couldn't imagine eating _McDonald's_ on a daily basis."

"You'd lose your fantastic figure," the male twin said unintentionally. Sasuke choked into his food and stared at the blonde in shock but Naruto had no idea of what he had said.

Naruko hadn't heard him. "That'd make you so fat and I can't see you as fat… you've always been slim. However a _McDonald's_ could change all that and make you a giant." She slurped up a large portion of noodles and went red in the face. "They don't, ugh, make noodles like this." Coughing, she wiped her mouth and poured herself a glass of water.

"Excuse you," Naruto muttered mildly through a mouthful of chicken.

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Naruko chastised.

"You did before."

"I'd already swallowed."

"So? There was still food in your mouth and-"

"Twins," Sasuke interrupted, "this argument is very fascinating but annoying. Just eat your food, alright?"

After that, conversation was much nicer. The twins amused everyone by acting out a scene from the school production the previous year, where they were shipwrecked cousins running from a grizzly bear (Kyuubi stepped in to become the bear). Minato performed the trick where he balanced a spoon on his nose and no one could replicate it. The hahaoyas told embarrassing baby stories that everyone already knew so they weren't really embarrassing. Itachi did his duck-voice and Fugaku fell off his seat with laughter.

"Dessert's in an hour," Kushina said as she cleared the table. "That'll give dinner enough time to go down."

"And afterwards we'll set off the fireworks!" Minato exclaimed.

"I'm lighting them," Naruko declared. She stood and joined her hahaoya in clearing the table. Naruto looked at Sasuke.

"Fancy getting out the _Scrabble_ board?" he asked. Mikoto heard and loudly professed that she wanted to play too.

That's how the next hour went. Everyone crowded around the _Scrabble_ board with four playing a game at a time. Kushina and Mikoto beat everyone, including Itachi, with their superior knowledge of words. Laughter rang through the night, especially when Minato went to fetch the dessert – chocolate cake and cheesecake. There was even a healthy banana slice for Sasuke since he hated sweets.

"Kyuubi," Minato eventually said, "would you be a dear and get the fireworks from the boot?"

Kyuubi grabbed the keys and ran to the car, grabbing out her jacket as well as the fireworks and bringing them both back to the table. She handed the box of fireworks to her chichi and slipped on the jacket.

"Looks like the fun's gonna begin," Naruto hissed to Sasuke.

"Let's go!" Naruko said excitedly, leaping to her feet. Minato led both families down the driveway to where it was darker. He and Naruko set up the fireworks while the rest settled onto the ground comfily.

"Can I lean on your legs?" Naruto asked the youngest Uchiha. Sasuke was sitting with his legs bent in front of him. He nodded and Naruto rested against the legs at a great angle for seeing the fireworks. Itachi and Kyuubi sat together, as did Fugaku and Mikoto.

The first wick was lit and Naruko and Minato rushed back to safety. Everyone stared as light shot into the air and burst into millions of red sparks that danced and twirled through the sky. That light was followed by five others in quick succession and the audience 'oohed' and 'aahed' at the show.

Sasuke leant forward to speak to Naruto. "This is actually quite good," he murmured as Naruko ran forward to light another one. "We always miss the New Year fireworks and this makes up for it."

Naruto turned his head so their noses were almost touching. "It sure does, huh? How about a rematch afterwards?"

Sasuke smirked and leant back on his hands. "You're so going down." Both boys chuckled and returned their attention to the sky, becoming completely entranced by the light show. At one point one of the canisters fell over and shot right between Kyuubi and Minato, missing them by inches. After that, Naruko fetched a clay pot and lit the wicks inside the pot.

Then, unfortunately, the fireworks had to run out. Ears ringing from the pops and explosions, they gravitated back to the table with Minato gathering all the empty canisters and throwing them in the nearest bin. Sasuke and Naruto went to play their pool game and their hahaoyas watched them sneakily.

"Kushina, you do know we're going to be in-laws one day," Mikoto whispered.

"I know. Naruto and Sasuke are going to get married, I can tell." Kushina eyed the two boys fondly. "I can't wait for the day when they realise their feelings."

Minato looked at the women curiously. "Are you talking about Naruto and Sasuke falling in love?"

"Yes," Kushina replied. She chuckled as Sasuke began to chase Naruto around the pool table angrily. "I predict it'll happen soon."

Over at the pool table, Sasuke used his cue to poke Naruto in the back in revenge, as the blonde had hit him in the face with his own cue. "That serves you right," Sasuke snarled as Naruto yelped and rubbed his backside.

"I said I was sorry," Naruto said meekly, shrinking away from the annoyed Sasuke.

"Whatever. Just make your move."

"You didn't have to be so mean about it." Naruto moved to the other side of the table for a better shot and bent low, poking his tongue out in concentration.

"Yes I did. No one pokes me and gets away with it." Sasuke poked him again for good measure, upsetting his aim so the cue glanced off the side of the white ball.

"You did that on purpose," Naruto accused.

"Maybe. Maybe not. It's my turn now."

"Boys," Kushina called, "it's home time!"

Naruto glared at Sasuke. "We'll be finishing this later."

Sasuke smirked. "I look forward to it. You should get home and do those assignments you were whining about before."

"Don't be surprised if I turn up on your doorstep tomorrow morning," the blonde warned, placing his cue on the pool table and helping Sasuke drag the tarp back over the top. When it was secured they went to join the rest of their families to say their goodnights.

Kushina and Mikoto made plans to go out for breakfast next weekend. Minato and Fugaku decided that they were going to the pub together the following evening with Kakashi and Fugaku's brother Obito. Kyuubi and Itachi organised to go out for coffee and maybe a movie the following morning (but it totally wasn't a date). Naruto and Naruko promised to rock up to the Uchiha household to coerce Sasuke into helping them with their assignments.

Their goodbyes were said and they collected all their plates and other items and stuck them into separate car boots. The Uzumakis left first, waving tiredly out the windows as they passed the other family. The Uchihas left shortly after, moving slowly along the rocky ground. Both families intended to get home and go straight to bed.

All in all, dinner with Uchihas and Uzumakis had been a complete success.

o.O.o

 _Owari_


End file.
